Strengths: strong as hell frame but still light. single pivot design makes servicing easy
Weaknesses: not very adjustable
Bottom Line:
this bike rules!!! strong to handle big drops and light enough to ride back up the hill. ideal for privateer racer with little service needed!! BRITISH MADE!!!! (cos were the best!!) nuff said
Bike Setup: 150mm rear travel, 180mm white bros forks, hope m4 on bulb hubs, xt drivechain, mrp, lots of other nice touches
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Submitted by
Karl Baker
a Weekend Warrior
from Newcastle upon Tyne
Date Reviewed: January 22, 2002
Strengths: Handles perfectly, point where u want to go, easy to maintain with only 1 pivot, travel is plush soaks up all the hits, compresses very little under pedaling and has a nice high b/b height nice and light to so you can throw it around more, and it just looks great, love the monocoque look its reassuringly strong.
Weaknesses: hmmm, not really a weakness, mad sounds come from the frame when stones hit it, but once ur used to it and u know it aint mechanical u forget its there
Bottom Line:
Ive had this bike nearly a year now and its great, no heavy maintenance that u get with some multi linkage full sus. bikes, its strong, lite and smooth to ride, i got the 5 inch version cos it was all the travel i needed, no point getting more travel then u need 4 the uk, if i wanted 6 inches all u do is change the shock, if u want even more travel get the 222, its basically a patriot with 8 inches and adjustable geometry, i have a Ms Isle aswell and that handles great, the frames are super strong without the weight penalty, BUY BRITISH!
Similar Products Used: Orange 222, Orange Ms Isle, Giant ATX 1 DH,
Bike Setup: Duel setup: medium (16) black 5 inch patriot, hope C2's, bomber drop offs, answer pro taper bars on a FUNN henchman stem, twentyfourseven 3 piece cranks and chainring on a slalom MRP chain device and DMR V12 pedals, XT pod, rear mech and cassette, D521's on hope sport hubs with Tioga 2.3 DH Tyres.
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Submitted by
Guy Harrington
a Downhiller
from Derbyshire, UK
Date Reviewed: October 23, 2001
Strengths: FOR 2001 PATRIOT LONG TRAVEL
Strong, Fast, light, looks good.
Weaknesses: loads of people say noisy rear end but I just turned my shock other way up and it stopped.
Bottom Line:
This bike is the dogs nads. Its really nice to ride. Handles drops really well I have done 6' + on it and it has survived. Jumps well, Corners well. Does everything really well. But If you want more than 6" travel get the 222. If you need anymore info just Email me.
Weaknesses: hey john sadler you are right about the pivots. just did a drop off, off a roof and some how both bolt´s de-threaded themselves and the clamps are kind of "bent". so I bent them back very carefully and put longer bolts in backwards and funky nuts from some old coda magic brakes on the front. that works weel until the bolts are "bent", takes about an hour of hard riding. so i called my faithfull people back in the north and the informed me to my dismay that a new swingarm would cost 600 quid! I paid 999. and no warranty. I am going to call orange myself in the morning and see if I can´t get a better price, but if they don´t budge I´ll have another nice garage decoration and me dad having a go at me at all the money I waste! It´s mine though.
Bottom Line:
I really liked it for the time I had it, until now I though it was unbreakable. I really treated it well and did everything according to the book where as all my mates don´t give a s h i t and are still ridin´. Well I am going to go for a mountain cycles tremor now, and see how that does me. I thought of an Aeon Joker but it just doesn´t seem to fill me with confidence. C U
Strengths: Light weight, corners & tracks well, jumps very well, good orange warranty.
Weaknesses: week shox mounts on from frame, but the newer models have the mount welded to a plate first. Not very progressive travle bottems out easy & fast (thats how i cracked my first frame).
Strengths: light, can be riden very fast, corners & tracks very well, jumps very well. but there are some issues
Weaknesses: week shock mount on front frame, newer models have the shock mount welded to a seprate plate first. not very progresive travel. bottems out very easy
Submitted by
jonathan coats
a Downhiller
from inverness scotland
Date Reviewed: August 10, 2001
Strengths: very nice ride, looks trick, realy plush ride, yhe best bike i have owned as it fits my riding style perfect the head angle is just right and the top tube length is sorted really good for dh duall and jump good on pedally bits without too much bobing
Weaknesses: needs a life time warrenty as i have just deformed my head tube with my agressive riding style
Bottom Line:
top notch bike i want a better warrenty incase i break it
Strengths: Feels solid. Screams to go faster even when your pants cant hold any more... Absolutely no flex at all, only up and down Patriot XC will suit anyone who wants to ride to their trail--ride up it--and then thrash down it keeping up with the best of them
Weaknesses: The Patriot XC has crappy WTB wheels and spokes---change these straight away. Not the best technical climber---but then it is originally a DH bike
Bottom Line:
Fantastic! A definate winner for an enduro bike. What it may loose on steep technical climbs it more that rewards on the downs--ooh baby!
Weight is good for the size of it but it feels as solid as hell and really does want you to keep going faster. Big bumps, wee bumps, the patriot loves them all and the downs that used to paralyse mt on my previous hardtails are not even noticed now.
As my first full bounce bike I am more than impressed and the SID lockout rear is v. nice on the roads and even on the odd climb--it's not needed only I was feeling rich the day I ordered the bike. GO ON GET ONE--but change the wheels quick they ar poo--I bust two spokes on two different occassions doing a mainly XC run!
It may seem expensive but for a handbuilt frame you can see and feel the quality.
P.S. Orange do custom colours and black is better than that undercoat grey finish that is the standard colour.
Similar Products Used: GT LTS, Scott Tacana--built for freeride
Bike Setup: 2001 Partiot XC--Factory spec except for new Rigida wheels with DT spokes. Psylo race, SID lockout on rear, XT, Race Face, Hope Mini, Conti Explorers
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Submitted by
keit wolff-moore
a Downhiller
from serra d´estrella
Date Reviewed: July 21, 2001
Strengths: it´s light, strong and I love it in orange. U can flick on to any line. The rear does what u expect it to do, so no nasty surprises. Low maintenance just two bearings! Hell even my mom likes it and that is good!
Weaknesses: Yeah with dual crowns the turning radious is f$#*@d! U can hardly carry it. Each little pebble that hits creates a new chime. The swing arm flexes quite a lot so the rear brake pads wear in all sorts of silly ways. Oh and uphill in mud such as in the good old UK is pure punishment! Uphill isn´t my thing anyway!
Bottom Line:
It´s great for doing almost anything yet it doesn´t excell in any specific area. It is too heavy for cross country and after 80 km/h it becomes really unstable even with more travel up front. I love it though it´s the bike I always wanted ´cause it just doesn´t break. Though when the money´s there I would be tempted by a TMX or Ellsworth Dare. But if anyone asks if they should get one, I´d be saying "don´t ask, buy" and you´ll know why within a week....
Similar Products Used: intense, ellsworth, sintesi, santa cruz bullit and super 8, trek vrx, marin, pace, schwinn, and I still want a go on a brooklynmachineworks tmx
Bike Setup: Z1 MCR 20mm, Taperlites, Hope C2s and Hubs (bulbs) Mavic D321, Nokian Gazza´s fr. and Fat Hakka r. XTR and Xt gears balhh blahh....
Weaknesses: Didn't ride it long enough to tell.....
Bottom Line:
Just like a bullit really, nice 6" plush arse, with a frame capable of running anything form Z1's to Boxxers. Good weight, makes for a very good trail/UK DH bike. Bugger it, I bet its bloody good on any DH course. It must be good, I saw at least 10 of the little blighters last Sunday at Wharncliff.......can all these riders be wrong?
Similar Products Used: Bullit, San Andreas, Stab dee-lux.
Bike Setup: Various, I've test ridden 3
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Submitted by
ALLAN DOYLE
a Downhiller
from E K SCOTLAND
Date Reviewed: May 14, 2001
Strengths: STIFF AS A BOARD AND ACTIVE JUST ABOUT ALL THE TIME,LIGHT BUT STRONG AND FAST AS FECK!. BUY BRITISH!!!!!!!!
Weaknesses: MAKES WEIRD ECHOING NOISES
Bottom Line:
CHAMPION!, FAST AS SH**T OFF A HOT CHROME SHOVEL!COULD I FIND A BETTER BIKE FOR THE MONEY < I DONT THINK SO. OK SO ITS NOT A STRAIGHT EIGHT BUT ITS YOUR ALL TIME BEST UK BIKE TO DATE, 2 WEEKS IN MORZINE IN JULY WILL TEST IT OUT AND ILL WRITE AGAIN.
Similar Products Used: BULLIT,(SAME SINGLE MID PIVOT DESIGN) BUT IT WAS TO LIGHT AND SKITTERY & DIDNT STEER OR TRACK HALF AS WELL (CRAP!)
Bike Setup: HOPE DH4,7"BOXXERS,AZONIC BARS,STEM,SEAT,ETC,BULBS,FOX SHOCK MICH COMP 16,TITEC ETC ETC.
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Submitted by
steve
a Weekend Warrior
from Essex UK
Date Reviewed: May 4, 2001
Strengths: works well for uk d/h, jumping and was great in morzine and les gets
Weaknesses: sodding manitou xverts!
Bottom Line:
it holds together well. it feels more solid than most full sussers, and can (with difficulty) be ridden on long distance xc and roads. the only thing that lets my bike down at the moment is the forks, which are like rigids over small bumps, and wayy too soft for jumping
Bike Setup: risse trixxes, 24/7 cranks --all thats really needed to be changed (except bars, stem etc.)
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Submitted by
Roy Stewart
a Downhiller
from Cleveland, England
Date Reviewed: March 23, 2001
Strengths: Looks and feels really strong so gives you the confidence to do anything.
Weaknesses: none yet
Bottom Line:
Having only ridden the bike round towns (due to the foot and mouth thing happening over here) it is fantastic and beats the hell out my old hardtail. Feels solid and it made me a better rider first time out, those steps suddenly seemed no problem at all made me wonder what all my fussing about had been for. I used to work in a bike shop and never before have I seen something this beutiful made of metal for this price. Buy one now if you can, if not dream about one!
Submitted by
CRAIG (REDNECK) B
a Weekend Warrior
from WILD WEST BOURNEMOUTH
Date Reviewed: February 9, 2001
Strengths: STRONG FRAME AND PRETTY GOOD COMPONENTS AS STANDARD,MAKES ME LOOK SEMI PROFESSIONAL!
Weaknesses: PIVOT BEARINGS,PERHAPS DUE TO ME GETTING TO EXCITED WITH THE NOVELTY OF FULL SUSPENSION AND CONTINOUSLY BOUNCING AROUND LIKE A DEMENTED POGO STICK
Bottom Line:
GOOD BIKE,THAT LOOKS GOOD WHEN PUSHING AROUND OR CLEANING IT (MORE TURTLE WAX PLEASE) HANDLES WELL BUT STARTING TO LOOK A LITTLE OUTDATED COMPARED TO MORE MODERN BIKES AVAILABLE/TOMAC,SANTA CRUZ,222,APOLLO
Strengths: this bike is so light even with a full on dh build(well nearly),i still use it for jumping when all my mates use hardtails.
Weaknesses: the noisy back end,but that doesnt matter as the bike is so good anyway
Bottom Line:
this IS the ultimate uk dh bike and i would highly recommend it to any1 who cannot afford 2 run 2 bikes as one of the best all round bikes u will ever ride!
